On patriotism.

Patriotism. Pride in one's country. It is often described in a way that makes it out to be the end all-be all of human existence. Gently, I'll say it makes me uncomfortable. Frankly, I'll say it makes me angry.

I think patriotism really inhibits one's perspective. It puts strict limitations on the point of view that one views the world with. Pride is phrased by Saint Augustine as "the love of one's own excellence." If one is clinging to the idea that their country is the best, it prevents one from seeing mistakes and from criticizing said mistakes.

For example, americans fear north korea's nuclear capabilities. I read a quote in Time from a n. korean official basically saying that if america disarmed its nuclear weapons, there would be no problems. The U.S. has a bit of a history of pre-emptive strikes... But not only do americans not realize the irony of fearing one from north korea, they also defend the idea of a "necessary" pre-emptive strike. A ameri-centric point of view prevents one from seeing another side of a conflict that could really bring about some clarity.

And on a basic level, patriotism says "we're better than everyone." This is not true. I don't care if you're Laos, Canada, Germany, Brazil, or the U.S. It's not true. What are we basing "better" on? It probably has a lot to do with money, military, and influence. None of those things are independently good. In fact, I'd venture to call money and military independently bad.

On an even more basic level, I think people have enough to put between us that make us different. We don't need sweeping generalizations to boost our self-worth. I mean, it all comes down to where we get our worth anyway. Countries are plots of land with imaginary lines drawn around them. They're intended to be divisive. That sucks.

There's a Fugazi lyrics I really love that says: "We draw lines and stand behind them. That's why flags are such ugly things."

Patriotism, in my mind, is a deadly weapon unto itself.